


Nostalgia

by motherstone



Series: Writings [7]
Category: Amulet (Graphic Novels)
Genre: Edit: now with chapter two!!, Gen, I'm pretty sure my trademark writing at this point is disastrous situations, No Plot, No plot either, also sorry but despite Rivas first appearance in a fix she doesn't do much, and not very deep either, basically wanted to write something exciting, either way enjoy!!, flood - Freeform, it's an Emily is more emotive and happy AU, just a funky story that is all folks, no coherent ending either, no ships, once again not a very good ending will edit when now coherent, or where the flashback sequences is longer than the real time, sorry :(, to accompany the art, ugh sorry!! I just honestly didn't know how to move forward, well not a character driven one for sure
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-15
Updated: 2019-11-06
Packaged: 2020-09-01 11:50:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20257642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/motherstone/pseuds/motherstone
Summary: Having the intention to investigate Gondoa, the crew pays the mountain a visit. But disaster strikes when a natural dam breaks down, splitting Emily and Trellis from the rest.They truly weren't expecting to have an unplanned journey back to where they started.





	1. Flood

**Author's Note:**

> OKAY first of all did this on impulse and purely for fun, not trying to evoke emotions tbh, just something exciting. The Rippers (very original of me I know) are just animals native to Gondoa that, duh, rips stuff. Including human/elven flesh. I DID have a plot here, about Emily being incredibly homesick and she and Trellis getting separated from the rest and them taking advantage of this opportunity to return back to earth one last time and a lot of feelings and all, BUT that will be another time. I dunno. Hopefully I'll update a chapter, a prequel to explain this crackery. Ok I'm done. Enjoy!

Trellis sprinted across the forest.

Quick, and agile feet barely stumbles on the twists and mounds of gigantic roots, swiftly cutting throughout the high and mighty trunks to make his way down the Gondoa. His presence startles a few living creatures but he pays them no heed, mind deadset on finding _certain_ _people_ while outrunning a _certain something_ to even bother taking note of it. And as soon as they see what comes behind him, they can see why and flee in panic.

  
The flood is high and ruthless.

  
It easily consumes roots, trees, and any living creatures unfortunate enough to be swept in, a watery monster that is ravenous and unrelenting. It's not summoned by mystical means nor attracted to negative intentions, but simply caused by a natural dam finally eroding, releasing the beast.

  
Minutes have passed since then, and the waters are nearly catching up to him, lapping at his heels as a dangerous warning and he puts more vigor in his speed, despite the protests in his lungs and legs. Panic is settling in but he suppreses it, burying it deep inside of him so it would bother him not further but the _pressure_ simply hardened it to a diamond and it stays, heavy and sharp in his stomach. Gritting his teeth, he presses on.

  
His eyes catch the flash of a familiar red flag of a moth and a moon belonging to an airship and it's like something near bursting in him finally popped and he yells.

  
"Flood!"

  
Riva was the closest to his position but still at a considerable distance, her eyes widen and face loses color as she sees the wave, stilled in shock and would've likely stayed there if Trellis had not grasped her arm and dragged her along, finally snapping out of her daze and matching his frantic speed.

  
"Captain Enzo! Start the engine!" Her voice barely managed the sizeable distance.

  
"Just what—" He starts, annoyed but he too sees the threat and promptly obeys, the airship whirring to life.

  
"Trellis!"

  
Head snapping to his side, catching Vigo running alongside them, who was nearest to the ship. "What happened?"

  
"Natural dam broke, nothing supernatural caused it — rock erosion!" He yells, and Vigo doesn't bother to get him to elaborate.

  
Rico, despite his initial running around in panic, instantly lowered the ladder for them. Vigo grabs ahold first and climbed aboard, helping Riva soon after.

  
His hand grasps the rung when he realizes something — or _someone_ — he's missed. "Where's Emily?"

  
"Still downhill! She's been holding back the Rippers!" Vigo firmly calls back. "She'll be fine Trellis!"

  
The _same_ girl who also believed she can handle everything that came her way (hint: she couldn't). He internally cursed. They had agreed to investigate separately: Emily down the mountain, he on top, while the rest stayed in the smack middle of it.

  
He hadn't realized he had stilled while on the ladder, if not for Riva snapping him out of it. "Trellis?! Get on here!"

  
His decision is already decided. "Go on ahead!"

  
"What? No!" She protests, aghast. "You're the King! Protocols say your life is priority—"

  
"Who cares about the protocols?!" He cries out, but he sees the arrival of the wave and he quickly pushes Riva roughly into Vigo's arms, drawing out an "Oomph!" and jumps down from the ladder, raising a barrier in front of the airship's bow to give them time to take off.

  
The uproar of the flood and Luna Moth's crew falls unto his deaf ears as he concentrates on his power, holding out against the overwhelming pressure of the water battering against it, splitting into two sides before instantly letting the barrier fall as soon as the airship is at a safe distance away and breaks into a sprint down the mountain again, certain death behind him.

  
Rushes of flood tries to enclose on him, a watery embrace but narrowly manages to outrun it, splashing through while shallow. The water violently clashes against one another, sending droplets flying in its ferocity.

  
What was down the mountain is no longer trees and roots, but hard, dark rocks, paved as its road or as narrow, colossal hallways he is forced into. The flood manages to bring some down with a deafening crash, debri raining down on him that he barely manages to avoid.

  
At the distance, he can see a flurry of red hair and a familiar brown cape. She looks a bit worn down and scruffy, but relatively unharmed; he can feel his shoulder relax a fraction in relief.

  
"Trellis!" She calls out, eyebrows curled and eyes piercing. "Where's—"

  
"No time!" He gave her hand as he redirects her back to where she came from. "Flood!"

  
"What — ?!" And in the few rare times her face shows a fraction of emotion, it does; her jaw drops slightly and eyes widening slightly but it quickly settles back to her usual frown, continuing to run.

  
They go at it for a few moments before she immediately tugs on his hand, realizing something. "Wait!"

  
Against his better judgement, he does, stopping in his tracks. "What is it?"

  
"The — The Rippers," she manages out, face grim. "I didn't take all of them down and they gave chase. Managed to lose them on the way here but if we go any further we'll run into them."

  
His hands chilled as a lump in his throat forms that he tries to swallow down, and a crack came itself in his serious, calm rock of a face. He then looks around to assess the situation: he looks back behind them, a flood; he looks in front of them and sure enough, a pack of Rippers is gaining on them fast. Damn, a wall of death on both sides, onset to kill them both.

  
Emily looks at him with a hint of expectance. He notices this, and he knows what she's thinking: he's the planner, he's the one who's supposed to have a plan, an antithesis to Navin and her both. Trellis would love to sarcastically and glumly disappoint her that he's coming up empty before they both die but both of them are incredibly tenacious, if not the most stubborn people. It's practically a survival trait. He didn't face the Elf King, the Firebird and otherwordly aliens for something as simple and mindless as a flood to kill him. He looks at her back with a calculating look in his eyes.

  
"What—" she starts when he pulls her close to him, arm around her waist. Best to keep close as much as possible.

  
"Not quite sure if I'll be able to pull it again a second time," he mutters, readying himself on what could be hours of labor. He managed to withstand the terrifying pressure at the bottom of the ocean with limited oxygen and in a state of shock for several hours with nothing but a barrier as his single thread between life and death; he can handle a powerful flood for a few minutes. "But if I do, it'll be killing two birds with one stone."

  
Emily likely doesn't know much of what he's saying, but she trusts him more than enough to rely on him with her and her family's lives. She braces herself in his arms.

  
He can hear the flood and the Rippers getting closer. Trellis grabs her tighter and closer. Raising a hand towards the flood, he concentrates, and wills.

  
Wisps of light emanates from his stone and starts to circle them, spinning faster and faster becoming denser in doing so, being so bright yet soft like the light of the moon and it forms just in time for the flood to hit it full force, and they can feel its impact, causing them to step back in its pressure and it washes away the Ripper that pounced behind them, and its pack with it.

  
It feels utterly claustrophobic yet safe at the same time as flood water pounded on the barrier's walls, and in its near translucency Emily can see the fishes and logs and everything that fell victim to its merciless waves.

  
And like a rock in the middle of a stream, Trellis face remains stoic and calm in concentration, as if a statue made of alabaster.


	2. Race

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cut off from the rest of their companions, Emily and Trellis is forced into climbing Gondoa once again.
> 
> Gladly, Emily likes to hike.

Emily runs across the forest.

  
It wasn't easy, not with the rocks making sure the roots grow as unevenly as possible. Yet her feet cleverly adapts at the varying slopes, shooting like a dart among the trees. The Gondoa is cold — making her breaths being visible puffs of air and her fingers, nose, and ears freezing — even at morning, but there was an eerie beauty in it, the gentle sunlight managing to pierce through the cacophony of trees gave a sense of tranquility. The native wildlife singing its own mysterious song, soft and lulling. But she doesn't stop to appreciate them, not as she usually does when she hikes.

  
Time was of the essence after all. She has already lost sight Trellis, who had taken off tangent a bit far back, taking a different path of goodness knows where.

  
But that's fine. She gives an exhilarated grin as she jumps from a ledge, feeling the wind through her hair and cape. She's going to win this after all.

_"Well that did it." A displeased sigh comes out of her as she observes the mountain, retracing where they needed to go. "Looks like we have to take an unplanned trip into Gondoa."_

  
_"The flood brought down the cliffs, blocking the way we came from. It's not like we have a choice." She snorts at his reply, remembering all the times she heard those words uttered over and over. Their existence is an irony; they have the potential to control much everything, but they spent most of the time helplessly subjected to the whims of the universe._

  
_Sure enough, Trellis knows what she is about either, rolling his eyes. "It's not that I like it either Emily."_

  
_"Let me complain, it's one of the few things I should be allowed to do." She crosses her arms. "Did they say anything?"_

  
_He looks up at the sky, as if searching for the Luna Moth there, or perhaps, in contemplation. "I've messaged the rest, and they said they'll meet us up in the forest a bit farther from Morley's cave."_

  
_That felt like a sudden weight falling on her. It doesn't hurt, not really scary, but it's surprising all the same. "Morley's? So we're..." She trails off, mind wandering towards memories that feels long ago, and she feels like a creek meeting a river. "... We're going to go back where we started again?"_

  
_Trellis levels a gaze at her, face stoic but eyes grim. "So it seems."_

She skids down a gravel slope, careful not to graze her hands. It was a more or less smooth slide. At the bottom, she skids to a stop, straightened and observes the terrain, pondering where to go next, racking her brain for a memory.

  
It goes nowhere. She clenches her jaw and decides to jog at least. After several minutes of sprinting leaves her out of breath, something a bit more light allows her to calm a bit.

  
Still, despite the lack of familiarity, it looks like she's in the right place. She's finally in the cavern then, the light muted but bright enough to see her surroundings. From how crowded and claustrophobic the forest feels, it was jarring to suddenly see everything around empty and level. The dark spots where she absolutely can't see anything was more unnerving, but she presses on. She's seen worse things than whatever the void keeps in store.

  
And thus, she continues to walk in the dark. But her mind wanders in somewhere brighter.

_"You're from a city?" It had a tone of incredulity, his eyebrows raised. "That explains why rest of you guys get along so well, despite being from wildly different worlds...."_

  
_The two of them decided in mutual understanding and eager agreement, with both of them forced to undergo a trek neither wants, they've decided they're not going to make it as painstaking as possible to the other. And thus they go at a leisure pace, filling the air with conversation and much welcomed companionship._

  
_"The rest of us guys?? Who's us?" She asks, intrigued. Her walk was a bit lazy, but Trellis's remained proper as ever._

  
_"You know... You, Navin, Riva, and Aly..." He looks at her, deadpan. "City slickers."_

  
_She chokes on a stifled laugh. The monotone but serious way of speaking was of no help. Out of all people, she would never have suspected Trellis — the one who talks the most poshly and all ancient out of all of them, — to even know that word. He didn't even know what a seatbelt is!_

  
_"We may be city slickers, but you— " she points an accusing finger towards his direction, " — are a hillbilly, country boy." He scoffs, insulted. It's wildly untrue, but amusing all the same._

  
_"I'll make you pay for that," he says coldly. "You'll be executed for slighting the king."_

  
_She gives a relieved groan. "Goodness. Finally."_

  
_Despite himself, Trellis cracks to a grin. "Same."_

  
_A shared laughter echoes in the mountain._

  
Sure enough, she comes across the creek. It's no mistake; it's the same one as before.

  
As soon as it comes in her sight, she can't help but brighten up with excitement. She's close, she hasn't seen Trellis yet, so she has a chance. Brimming with newfound energy, she then breaks into a sprint, faithfully following the creek.

  
Even then, she tries to be quiet. She can't let him know that she's close; better to give him the benefit of doubt that she's nowhere near winning. It was fun, having her trekking skills challenged against time and an opponent. It's been so long after all, as she's rarely traveled for leisure these years just like she used to with her father.

  
She doesn't have him here with her, but she does have a new family. And it's nice all the same.

_"Emily, if you would please," he says scornfully, "let me catch up."_

  
_She looks back, Trellis several places behind. "You have longer legs, you can adjust to my pace."_

  
_An annoyed look. "I know you take great pride in your speed, considering you were running faster than I am when we were the Void..."_

  
_"Oh please," she says, feeling a small prickle of guilt and embarrassment. That was a bit low. "You were panicking, I was panicking, we're both panicking because we seriously thought we're about to be erased from existence. Sorry, about that."_

  
_Trellis gives a sigh, begrudgingly accepting her apology. She's relieved, but feels bad all the same. She's incredulous at how fast Trellis forgives people, and she wonders if he is even capable of keeping grudges at all. Underneath that stoic and serious exterior, is a soft person._

  
_She then returns her attention to walking, wondering what Trellis sees in her in return._

  
_It was startling, especially when Trellis just seems to be just absentmindedly admiring their surroundings when he spoke. "You know back then, I was actually following you and Navin the entire time."_

  
_Back then? Emily frowns in confusion. Which time is that? She spends a few moments lost, before it clicks in, whipping around so fast she startles Trellis._

  
_"Seriously?!" He cringes, nodding apologetically. At that, she steps back in disbelief, the memories of that time rapidly running in, racking her brain for even a glimpse of Trellis being there and coming up none. "That's terrifying." And utterly nerve-wracking. Being followed the entire time, and not once she realized, even with her guard up._

  
_"You never noticed?" He asks, surprised._

  
_"Not until you showed yourself as the scariest thing there? No." She can't help but jab with a sharp tone._

  
_"I'm sorry..." It's genuinely apologetic, and Trellis's expression heralds he doesn't remembering it as his either, thus she let's it go with a huff. Even then, it was justified. It's not his fault, and she tells him so. They then continue to walk._

  
_"But I still can't believe we never noticed... Not even the Voice told me that you were there..."_

  
_He squirms, a bit uncomfortable. "I've, I've never been one for fighting, but I do know how to go my around things undetected. One of my best skills is stealth."_

  
_"Clearly..." Agreeing with a bemused expression. Even now, she realizes as hard as strains to do so, she can't hear Trellis's footsteps._

  
_Well... That just makes the silence even more defeaning._

  
_An idea sprang up, prompting her to nudge Trellis for his attention. "Hey, Trellis, let's have a race."_

  
_"A race??" A look of disbelief at the suggestion flitted in his face, as if about to tell her off but it deflates as soon as he sees Emily is serious. He gives a look around, vaguely gesturing in any direction. "Race until where?"_

  
_"Until at the entrance of the cavern where the Charnon House used to be, you know, the origin of the creek?" She stretches. It seems she got Trellis on board without a hitch. "We're going to have to go there anyway to get to Morley's cave, right? Might as well have fun while we do it."_

  
_"That's true..." Slight reluctance is then waved away, when he finally decides to indulge Emily. "Well, any rules in particular?"_

_"Anything works, as long as no one's sabotaging each other. No using of the stones. Any path and shortcut is allowed if it gets you there. First to get on top, wins."_

  
_She gives out a hand. He grabs it firmly and shakes it._

  
_"Agreed."_

  
_They then positioned themselves._

  
_"Ready?" She looks at him, challenging him. His expression remains cool._

  
_"Ready."_

  
_"Then on three..." They wait for a moment, mentally counting down the seconds._

  
_"Go!"_

  
_They ran as if the Void is swallowing up everything behind them._

The only thing left was said slope.

  
It's rocky, a bit steep and she needs to climb it but this'll be easy; it's no Devil's Head. This is practically a hill. She readies herself, tightening the laces in her boots before setting off to work.

  
Setting her foot for support could be better, she nearly slipped a few times but she's going at a very good pace. Emily gazes upwards, mentally planning her route to the top.

  
Every part of her body was pretty tired trying to get here but that's fine. She's used to it. Her determination is stronger than whatever came in her way, and this one is no different.

  
She climbs, hands gripping the rough, dark rocks. Her father's words echoing to her head, serving as a guide. With a rapid ascent, so does her confidence in winning. She didn't hear any sort of thumping of footsteps, nor has she seen anyone at the bottom. No competition in the climb, only time. Breathing was a lot of work but she can manage. The angle is steep, but it's a small obstacle and she was close, absolutely close. It's right in front of her. Her hand strains to reach at the top—

  
Only to see a boot stomp in its place, Trellis looming over her.

  
"Oh come on!" She groans in disbelief. That was fast — too fast. The only thing Emily dared to do was glare.

  
"I'm sorry for the disappointment, but —" his head tilts, "— it looks like I win." He smiles apologetically, hand reaching out to help her up. She accepts it. Despite its sincerity, she can't help but scowl. He's not breathing heavily or looking strained. If anything, he barely looks winded, and that irritates her more.

  
"That's honestly impossible," she says, with a look demanding an explanation. "How on Alledia did you get here so fast? I didn't even see you!"

  
"I've been here a moment earlier honestly." He raises both of his hands in apology as she just looks absolutely outraged. Trellis keeps going. "Also, I've been assigned here before as a mission, so I know the innings of this mountain very well. And besides — " a wry smile is plastered on his face, "— I'm a hillbilly."

  
Ironic echo. Well that came to bite her in the back, elucidating another groan out of her. Trellis's expression became contemplative.

  
"My village is located with mountains, and rocky slopes. I grew up trekking every inch of it. Gondoa is a near replica of the place so —" he gives a nod towards Gondoa's surroundings in acknowledgement," — I'm pretty much in my area of expertise."

  
"Ugh," her fingers rubbed her temples. Of course. She should've remembered and factored that in. _Of_ _course_. "You accepted a challenge you knew you were going to win at a landslide." Emily looks at Trellis, torn between impressed and internally berating herself. "I really should've thought ahead."

  
"Well," he says with a playful mirth in his eyes, "at least I'm finally better than you at one thing."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, Emily just LOVES to hike, but Trellis is far more experienced in the wild than she is. I've been having this idea for a super long time, glad I finally did. I couldn't go with angst (tbh the chapter was supposed to originally go like that, tbh I'm not even planning a second chapter), so I went with something more light-hearted instead.
> 
> Anyways! This is just for fun. If there's a plot, then it's probably a coincidence. It's finally out.

**Author's Note:**

> Ok! Decided to continue this! Except... The updates gonna end up months. I'm so sorry.


End file.
